We’re only 8 days into the new year, and already they worst idea of the year has surfaced.

This idea will surely outlast all other bad automotive ideas to come during the remaining 357 days of this year. Nothing good or productive or profitable can possibly come from this idea, and I’m left shaking my head at the very thought of it.

The idea probably won’t ever see the light of day, but even sitting in the dark, behind closed doors, it’s truly awful.

What could be so abhorrent that the very possibility makes me wonder if third graders are running car companies now?

I’ve been a longtime proponent of changing the way cars are sold. The dealer system has worked for many years, but I’d love to see manufacturers sell directly to consumers online.

Tesla is dealing with this issue right now, as it tries to build new company-owned stores across the United States and experiences pushback from traditional dealers in the form of lawsuits. That’s unfortunate, but sometimes old ways are hard to change.

That’s why I was more than a little surprised to read that General Motors, a stalwart in the old ways of doing things, has come up with a plan to begin the process of selling vehicles online.

Yes, buying a CPO vehicle will cost more than buying an as-is used car from a dealer or private party. The upside, though, is a warranty of some kind along with the peace of mind that comes with knowing the car underwent a 2,163-point inspection or whatever is standard now at dealerships.

The target market for CPO cars is people who want an alternative to a new car, but with the same assurance that if something goes wrong, they’re covered.

Virtually all automakers offer some kind of CPO program, and General Motors’ has recently been recognized as one of the best.

Automakers want to convince us all that buying a new car is preferable to buying used. Dealers just hope you buy a car—new would be nice, but there’s good money to be made selling used ones, too.

Consumers obviously are left to make the choice and sometimes spend hours researching whether new or used makes the most sense. Much of that decision comes down to financials, since the features in new cars do not vary much from what’s available in recent used vehicles.

General Motors would like to add more tech-laden features to new cars, so tech-savvy buyers might be convinced to pony up for new instead of used.

Inside my car is about the only place left where I can find complete solitude and turn off the outside world if choose. I can either play my Korn albums as loud as I want, listen to NPR if I choose or bask in the glory of silence and a pleasing exhaust note.

As Frank Costanza used to say, it’s my “Serenity now!”

Aside from the outdoor advertising along the roads I travel, when I’m in my car I can be completely free of ads from companies hungry for my money. Soon, though, even the sacred space inside our cars may be fertile ground for new advertising opportunities. One of those could be ads built right into the infotainment systems of new cars.

Want to turn up the air conditioning? Doing so could be brought to you by the good people at Jiffy Lube. Changing a radio station could come courtesy of Allstate.

It can be hard to sit here and write about cars on a day when so many humans were hurt in a senseless act of violence. I am not in Boston. I’ve never been to Boston. But that doesn’t take the pain away. This wasn’t just about Boston, but about the running community, the families of runners, the volunteers for the race, the citizens of the city and the people across the world watching live footage of the response and the tremendous outpouring of support that came immediately.

I know this is a car blog, and I’ll get back on topic, but I can’t let this event go unnoticed here, especially with so many fellow CarGurus, family and friends in the Boston area. I truly hope everyone is well, and that, if there is a positive to be taken away, it’s that the darkness of evil is replaced just a little more by the light of all those who choose to love instead of hate.

Part of recovery, of course, is moving on and finding stories of cooperation and getting back to the things that make us happy. With that in mind, I want to talk about two adversaries coming together for the better good of the automotive industry.